DOCSLIB.ORG

Prologue Aboard the Ballistic Missile Submarine USS

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Prologue Aboard the Ballistic Missile Submarine USS Copyright ©2021 by Dennis A. Tosh, all rights reserved Prologue Aboard the Ballistic Missile Submarine U.S.S. Wyoming, SSBN-742, Somewhere in the South China Sea – Six Months Ago The U.S.S. ballistic missile submarine Wyoming churned through the water at twenty knots as it progressed on a rectangular track around its patrol area just inside the South China Sea. A recent conflict with China had taken the two nations to the brink of nuclear war. The Wyoming carried, among other armament, 24 Trident D2-5 ballistic missiles, each with a range of 7,500 miles and capable of carrying multiple, independently-targeted nuclear warheads. It was a powerful deterrent and, after its redeployment from the North Atlantic to the Far Eastern Pacific, represented the United States’ principal insurance policy against an ever-bolder China. The Captain of the Wyoming was aware that the People’s Liberation Army’s Navy would deploy every capability they had to find and shadow his boat. But a key element of any SSBN’s mission was to remain a ghost, and he was one of the best at exploiting a ballistic missile submarine’s key strategic advantage – stealth. During his previous three patrols, he had never been found by an adversary. In between deployments, his skill was tested during multiple wargame exercises. He had been found only once by an American Skipper on the chase team, and that man was now an Admiral commanding the submarine force in the Pacific and his boss. The Wyoming’s Captain was supremely confident in his ability to remain invisible, especially to the Chinese. Chinese submarine detection capabilities were widely believed to remain behind the curve, with the lion share of their naval budget diverted to investment in aircraft carriers. He was about to be surprised. “Conn, sonar, contact! Bearing is zero seven zero, range three thousand yards,” announced the STS, or Sonar Technician, Submarines, an E-6 Petty Officer First Class responsible for the acoustic monitoring of the submarine’s underwater environment. “Contact speed is fifteen knots.” “Sonar, Conn, aye,” replied the Officer of the Deck, the Naval Officer responsible for the Watch, or oversight of the ships maneuvering and safety when the Captain was not in the submarine’s Conning Tower. “Classify contact Sierra One. Call the Captain to the Conn.” The announcement, “Captain to the Conn”, resonated throughout the Boat’s Main Communications Intercom, or MC1, reaching Captain Alvarez as he stood in the missile compartment quizzing one of the launch officers on the maintenance procedures. He dropped his question mid-sentence, tapped the junior officer on the upper arm in a friendly gesture, turned and began running down the passageway. In less than sixty seconds, the Captain emerged through a bulkhead into the boat’s nerve center, its conning tower. “I have the Conn,” he announced, as he proceeded towards his command station. “Captain has the Conn,” replied the Officer of the Deck, acknowledging that he was handing supervision of the Watch back to the boat’s Captain. “What’s up, Dave?” asked the Captain of the officer he had just relieved, addressing the man by his first name, an informality that was often the custom on submarines. “Contact at three thousand yards, skipper. Speed is fifteen knots on a bearing of zero seven zero.” “Sonar, Conn. What’s out there?” asked the Captain, addressing the STS, or sonar operator, for details on what the contact might be. He knew it was likely another submarine, but what kind? And why was it there?” “Conn, Sonar. System is not returning a positive ident,” replied the STS, using the abbreviated version of the word identification, consistent with the emphasis on brevity in submarine communications. “Contact’s sonar signature is not matching anything in the computer’s library. Running diagnostics. Standby.” “Anything on the threat board, Dave?“ the Captain asked. “Are we supposed to have company?” “Negative, sir,” replied the officer. “Threat board was clear at last report.” “Sonar, Conn. What are your systems telling you?” “Conn, Sonar. Diagnostics evaluate acoustic signature as similar to a Chinese Shang- class attack boat, Type Zero-Niner-Three.” An attack boat was a submarine tasked with finding and, if necessary, sinking a ballistic missile sub. “Contact is moving under asymmetric propulsion, likely a seven-blade prop, consistent with a Shang, but something is off. The profile of the boat is different. Sonar signature suggests a larger displacement, possibly from a wider beam.” “Larger displacement?” the Captain asked, surprised. “Conn, Sonar, aye. Sonar is measuring a shaft RPM consistent with an eighteen-knot speed for a Shang. Contact is moving at fifteen knots. The shaft is pushing a greater mass through the water. It’s not a conventional Shang.” “Is she showing hostile intent?” asked the Captain. “Conn, Sonar, negative. There are no mechanical transients,” the STS replied, referring to sounds other than the boat’s propulsion system that might indicate the Chinese sub was opening its outer torpedo doors in preparation for an attack. “Battle stations, torpedo,” the Captain ordered with a calm in his voice he didn’t feel. “Close all watertight doors. I’m not taking chances.” A Lieutenant Senior Grade, standing nearby, retrieved a handset from its cradle and repeated the order, announcing, “Man battle stations torpedo. Close watertight doors.” into the boat’s MC1 to convey it throughout the rest of the boat. “Wheps, Conn,” the Captain said, using the abbreviation Wheps to refer to the Weapons Officer. “Calculate firing solutions to contact and feed solutions to tubes two and four. Ready tubes two and four.” “Conn, Weapons, aye. Calculating firing solutions. Readying tubes two and four.” “Who the hell are you?” the Captain muttered under his breath. “Helm make your course one six zero. Let’s take a perpendicular track away from his vector. All ahead, slow. Make revolutions for eight knots. Rig the boat for silent running. Maybe he hasn’t noticed us yet.” “Conn, Maneuvering, aye. Coming about to zero six zero. Slowing to eight knots. Rigging the boat for silent running.” “Conn, Weapons. Firing solutions locked and loaded. Tubes two and four ready in all respects. Shall I open outer doors?” “Negative,” replied the Captain. “I don’t want to spook him and force his hand. I’m going to try and lose him first.” “Conn, Weapons, aye.” “Maneuvering, Conn,” said the Captain. “Ten-degree down-bubble on the diving plane. Make your depth three five zero feet. Let’s take her down below the thermocline and see if we can further mask our escape,” he ordered, the thermocline being a steep temperature gradient in the ocean marked by a layer above and below where the water is at different temperatures. Temperature gradients tend to reflect sound waves and can hide from sonar another submarine’s presence. “Conn, Maneuvering, aye. Ten degree down-bubble. Making depth three five zero feet.” “Ok,” said the Captain, “does somebody want to explain to me now how a Chinese attack boat closed within three thousand yards without being detected?” “Conn, Sonar. No answer to that, sir. We just re-ran the tapes, and nothing shows up prior to our alert at three thousand-yards. The boat must have some new type of countermeasures.” “Well, that’s a great big bucket of bad,” said the Captain. “Comms,” he said, referring to the Communications Officer, “prepare a brief for COMSUBPAC,” referring to the COMandSUBmarinesPacific. “We need to raise the surface antenna and alert fleet as soon as we lose this guy.” “Conn, comms, aye.” “Conn, Maneuvering. Leveling off at three five zero feet. Speed eight knows at course one six zero.” “Maneuvering, Conn, aye.” Suddenly, a loud ping reverberated throughout the Wyoming. “Conn, Sonar! Contact is attempting to reacquire us with active sonar!” “So much for not noticing us,” observed the Captain. “They must have deployed a tethered buoy below the thermocline. “Sonar, Conn. Go active. One ping only. Reacquire.” “Conn, Sonar, aye.” “Wheps, Conn. Recalculate on new sonar bearing and lock firing solution for tubes two and four, but standby. Keep outer doors closed. I’m going to let him know we’ve got a cocked pistol and are prepared to retaliate, but I want him to understand we do not plan to take the first shot. The good news is he knows that at this range with a sonar-fix from our ping we can’t possibly miss. The bad news is we know at this range he can’t possibly miss either.” The Captain then turned to the Lieutenant standing next to him and said, “So, here’s the question: is he just trying to piss us off or is he about to attempt revenge for our sinking three boats of theirs in the Pacific last year?” referring to the U.S. Navy sinking three Chinese ballistic-missile submarines in the Pacific during recent tensions caused by China’s attack on the United States, code-named, Operation Chaos. “I suspect it may have been the latter right up until we used that sonar ping to announce we are on to him. I’m betting that gave him pause. I don’t think he’s on a suicide mission.” “Conn, Sonar. Contact just reacquired by towed array.” A submarine’s towed array refers to the type of sonar system that uses a long cable with attached hydrophones towed behind the boat to listen passively to a submarine’s sounds instead of measuring feedback from active sonar pings. “He’s followed us below the thermocline,” the Captain observed. “Any mechanical transients?” “Negative, but he’s changed course to zero niner five and reduced speed to ten knots.” “He’s triangulating an intercept course,” the Captain observed.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • 2014 Ships and Submarines of the United States Navy
    AIRCRAFT CARRIER DDG 1000 AMPHIBIOUS Multi-Purpose Aircraft Carrier (Nuclear-Propulsion) THE U.S. NAvy’s next-GENERATION MULTI-MISSION DESTROYER Amphibious Assault Ship Gerald R. Ford Class CVN Tarawa Class LHA Gerald R. Ford CVN-78 USS Peleliu LHA-5 John F. Kennedy CVN-79 Enterprise CVN-80 Nimitz Class CVN Wasp Class LHD USS Wasp LHD-1 USS Bataan LHD-5 USS Nimitz CVN-68 USS Abraham Lincoln CVN-72 USS Harry S. Truman CVN-75 USS Essex LHD-2 USS Bonhomme Richard LHD-6 USS Dwight D. Eisenhower CVN-69 USS George Washington CVN-73 USS Ronald Reagan CVN-76 USS Kearsarge LHD-3 USS Iwo Jima LHD-7 USS Carl Vinson CVN-70 USS John C. Stennis CVN-74 USS George H.W. Bush CVN-77 USS Boxer LHD-4 USS Makin Island LHD-8 USS Theodore Roosevelt CVN-71 SUBMARINE Submarine (Nuclear-Powered) America Class LHA America LHA-6 SURFACE COMBATANT Los Angeles Class SSN Tripoli LHA-7 USS Bremerton SSN-698 USS Pittsburgh SSN-720 USS Albany SSN-753 USS Santa Fe SSN-763 Guided Missile Cruiser USS Jacksonville SSN-699 USS Chicago SSN-721 USS Topeka SSN-754 USS Boise SSN-764 USS Dallas SSN-700 USS Key West SSN-722 USS Scranton SSN-756 USS Montpelier SSN-765 USS La Jolla SSN-701 USS Oklahoma City SSN-723 USS Alexandria SSN-757 USS Charlotte SSN-766 Ticonderoga Class CG USS City of Corpus Christi SSN-705 USS Louisville SSN-724 USS Asheville SSN-758 USS Hampton SSN-767 USS Albuquerque SSN-706 USS Helena SSN-725 USS Jefferson City SSN-759 USS Hartford SSN-768 USS Bunker Hill CG-52 USS Princeton CG-59 USS Gettysburg CG-64 USS Lake Erie CG-70 USS San Francisco SSN-711 USS Newport News SSN-750 USS Annapolis SSN-760 USS Toledo SSN-769 USS Mobile Bay CG-53 USS Normandy CG-60 USS Chosin CG-65 USS Cape St.
    [Show full text]
  • D0007044.A1.Pdf
    The Center for Naval Analyses (CNA) is a private, nonprofit, federally funded research and development center that does analyses for the Department of the Navy. The Occasional Paper series is published by CNA, but the opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of CNA or the Department of the Navy. Cover: Panzer I chassis in use as surrogate tanks in German experimentation. A Note on the Title: Wotan, the Norse god of wisdom and logic, was also latterly associated with war and battle. His name survives in our word, "Wednesday." Distribution limited to U.S. Government agencies. Specific authority: N00014-00-D-0700. For copies of this document, call the CNA Document Control and Distribution Section (703) 824-2123. CLEARED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE Copyright © 10/10/02 The CNA Corporation Wotan's Workshop: Military Experiments Before the Second World War Brian McCue Center for Naval Analyses 4825 Mark Center Drive • Alexandria, Virginia 22311-1850 Contents Introduction 1 Themes 3 The structure of experimentation 3 Models, modeling, and a paradox 5 Surrogates 5 Artificialities 6 Theory, hypothesis, and serendipity 6 "All's fair in love and experimentation"? 8 The U.S. prepares for World War II 11 The "Fleet Problems," 1923-1940 11 The experiments of General William Mitchell 16 Major "Pete" Ellis and USMC inter-war experimentation 17 The U.S. Army's Louisiana Maneuvers 18 Pacific Fleet Fighter Director Officers' School 21 Observations on the U.S. experiments 23 Germany prepares for World War II 27 The German Army's experiments with blitzkrieg 27 The German Navy's experiments with "wolf packs" 29 A "Limited Technical Assessment" 32 Observations on the German experiments 33 Overall observations 37 Recapitulating the themes 37 The experiments' points of similarity 39 The paradox of modelling, resolved 39 References 43 Endnotes .
    [Show full text]
  • Celebrating Navy Women: Perseverance & Achievements
    Celebrating Navy Women: Perseverance & Achievements omen have profoundly impacted our Navy for more than a century, since being Wallowed to join in 1917. To honor those pioneers who have led the way, along with the more than 60,000 women who serve today, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday and Mrs. Linda Gilday, in coordination with Navy History and Heritage Command, created a display in CNO’s residence, Tingey House, as well as this e-book, which is organized into the following groupings: WWII era and prior; a selection of women ‘firsts’ in the Navy; and some photos of today’s Sailors. Where additional information is available, the photos are hyperlinked to articles, videos, and oral histories (click the photo to access the files). While we know this is a small representation of the women who serve today and the millions who have served, it is our hope it sparks conversation that honors women who wear the cloth of this nation. As a Navy, we celebrate the many accomplishments that women have achieved through hard work, grit and determination. Chief Yeoman (F) Loretta Perfectus Walsh After enlisting on March 17, 1917, Chief Walsh became not only the woman to serve in the Navy and its first female Chief Petty Officer, but also the first woman to serve in a non-nursing capacity in any branch of the armed forces. She served as a Yeoman (F) in the U.S. Naval Reserve during WWI. The first enlisted women in the Navy. Recruited to serve for the duration of WWI in order to free up male personnel for duty at sea, nearly 11,000 women were in uniform by Armistice Day (November 11, 1918).
    [Show full text]
  • The Admiral Nimitz Historic Site
    THE ADMIRAL NIMITZ HISTORIC SITE - NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE PACIFIC WAR Centerfor Pacific War Studies Fredericksburg, Texas Interview with John Mesko U.S. Navy Interview With John Mesko My name is Frank Turkowski, and I am interviewing Mr. John Mesko on October 14, 2002. This interview is in support of the National Museum of the Pacific War Studies in Fredericksburg, Texas, to preserve historical information related to World War II in the Pacific. in Fredericksburg, Texas. Mr. Turkowski: Thank you for relating your experiences during World War H. To begin, may I ask, where and when you were born? Mr. Mesko: I was born in Eckley, Pennsylvania, in 1916, August 29. It was a little coal mining town. Anthracite coal, a coal mine, that’s where my dad worked. Mr. Turkowski: What were your parents’ names? Mr. Mesko: Andrew and Mary. Mr. Turkowski: Where were they born? Mr. Mesko: Austria-Hungary. My dad immigrated in 1909, my mother immigrated in 1911. They married in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, in 1913. Mr. Turkowski: Was there an Austrian community there? Mr. Mesko: Wilkes-Barre was, actually, most of the Hungarians, Austrians, and Czechoslovak people. My dad and mother spoke the Czechoslovakian language. That was before Czechoslovakia was even on the map. When they lived there it was Austria-Hungary. Mr. Turkowski: Do you have any brothers and sisters? Mr. Mesko: Yes, I had three brothers and four sisters. Mr. Turkowski: What were their names? Mr. Mesko: My two twin sisters were older than I was, Mary and Ann. They were born in 1915.
    [Show full text]
  • Military Collection Xvii. Naval Papers Miscellaneous Papers, 1770-1963
    MILITARY COLLECTION XVII. NAVAL PAPERS MISCELLANEOUS PAPERS, 1770-1963 Box No. Contents 1 Letter: John Paul Jones to Robert Morris, October 13, 1770; 1 item, positive photocopy Letter: John Paul Jones to Gouverneur Morris, September 2, 1782; 1 item, positive photocopy Pamphlet: John Paul Jones Autopsy Reports, 1965; 1 item, printed Letter: Rear Adm. A. T. Mahan, USN, to Rear Adm. S. B. Luce, USN, relative to his book, The Influence of Seapower upon History, January 1, 1886; 1 item, positive photocopy Letter: Lt. W. B. Cushing, USN, to Rear Adm. D. D. Porter, USN, October 13, 1864, reporting the destruction of the Confederate ram, Albemarle; 1 item, positive photocopy Letter: Comdr. W. H. Macomb, USN, to Rear Adm. D. D. Porter, USN, October 29, 1864, reporting the destruction of the Albemarle; 1 item, positive photocopy Letter: Rear Adm. David D. Porter, USN, to Gideon Welles, Secretary of the Navy, November 1, 1864, forwarding the above two letters; 1 item, positive photocopy Letter: “Paul” [Joseph Paul Perry] to “My dear Mama”, written on USS North Carolina stationery, May 13, 1909; 1 item, manuscript Commission of Henry B. Watson as second lieutenant in the Marine Corps, October 5, 1836; 1 item, negative photocopy Commission of Henry B. Watson as first lieutenant in the Marine Corps, March 3, 1847; 1 item, negative photocopy Action reports of ships named for the state or capital of North Carolina: USS North Carolina, Iwo Jima, March 13, 1945; 1 item, positive photocopy USS Raleigh, Manila Bay, May 1, 1898; 1 item, positive photocopy USS Raleigh, Cavite, Philippines, July 10, 1898; 1 item, positive photocopy USS Raleigh, Pearl Harbor, December 13, 1941; 1 item, positive photocopy Histories of ships named for the state of and places in North Carolina, Navy Department, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Division of Naval History, Ship’s Histories Section, 1948-1957; 7 items, typescript: USS Albemarle MISCELLANEOUS PAPERS, 1770-1963 MILITARY COLLECTION XVII.
    [Show full text]
  • Marine Modelling Revisited 26 USN Dreadnought Battleships
    REVISITED Marine Modelling International magazine ran from October 1985 to August 2017 for a total of 365 issues with 240 ‘Waterlines’ articles including in the first and last issues. Beginning in 2011 many of these articles were gathered together in various ‘Waterlines – Revisited’ pdfs providing the opportunity to re-read some of those early and not so early articles virtually as they were. This final pdf combines a series of unpublished articles originally planned for late 2017/early 2018, their subject being the United States Navy’s Dreadnought Battleships. Additional pictures & information have been included. 26: USN Dreadnought Battleships Early Dreadnoughts .................................................................................................................................................................. 2 Notes on the Waterlines ........................................................................................................................................... 2 South Carolina Class ................................................................................................................................................ 2 Delaware Class ......................................................................................................................................................... 3 Wyoming Class ........................................................................................................................................................ 3 New York Class ......................................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • 197 Michael Lowey: Uss Shaw
    #197 MICHAEL LOWEY: USS SHAW Steven Haller (SH): My name is Steven Haller, and we're here at the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel in Honolulu. The date is December 4, 1991 and it's about eleven AM and we have here Mr. Michael Lowey. Mr. Lowey was a Gunner's Mate Third Class on the destroyer, USS SHAW. He was twenty years old at the time of the attack on December 7, 1941 and he's seventy years of age now. And Mr. Lowey, I really do want to thank you for joining us and taking the time to share your story with us today. Michael Lowey (ML): You're welcome. SH: Why don't we start by asking you how you got into the service? ML: That's rather funny. I seen a movie one time and it had three or four big battleships, you know. I think it was a newsreel and it just impressed me. From then on, I think I was probably eleven or twelve years old, I knew I was going in the Navy. When I got to be eighteen, I went in. And as you can see, I stayed quite a while. SH: You said you stayed for a long career. ML: Yeah, thirty years, seven months. SH: Great. Where did you do your basic training? Was that at the Great Lakes . ML: No, Rhode Island. SH: Rhode Island. ML: Newport, Rhode Island, in the cold. SH: What was your first assignment? ML: USS WYOMING, in Norfolk. I was only on there, though, about three or four months and I got transferred from that and I went to a four-stacker, tin can, we were getting close to the war.
    [Show full text]
  • Us Navy Dreadnoughts 1914–45
    US NAVY DREADNOUGHTS 1914–45 RYAN K. NOPPEN ILLUSTRATED BY PAUL WRIGHT © Osprey Publishing • www.ospreypublishing.com NEW VANGUARD 208 US NAVY DREADNOUGHTS 1914–45 RYAN K. NOPPEN © Osprey Publishing • www.ospreypublishing.com CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 4 THE SOUTH CAROLINA CLASS 7 t South Carolina Class Specifications THE DELAWARE AND FLORIDA CLASSES 10 t Delaware Class Specifications t Florida Class Specifications WYOMING CLASS 15 t Wyoming Class Specifications NEW YORK CLASS 18 t New York Class Specifications US DREADNOUGHT BATTLESHIP OPERATIONS 1914–18 20 t The Veracruz Occupation t World War I INTERWAR SCRAPPING, DISARMAMENT AND MODERNIZATION 34 US DREADNOUGHT BATTLESHIP OPERATIONS 1939–45 35 t Neutrality Patrols t Actions in the European Theater t Actions in the Pacific Theater CONCLUSION 45 BIBLIOGRAPHY 46 INDEX 48 © Osprey Publishing • www.ospreypublishing.com US NAVY DREADNOUGHTS 1914–45 INTRODUCTION The United States was the second of the great naval powers to embrace the concept of the all-big-gun dreadnought battleship in the early 20th century. The US Navy was seen as an upstart by much of the international community, after it experienced a rapid increase in strength in the wake of the Spanish- American War. American naval expansion paralleled that of another upstart naval power, Germany, whose navy also saw meteoric growth in this period. What is little known is that a tacit naval arms race developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries between these two powers, due primarily to soured foreign relations caused by a rivalry over colonial territory in the Pacific and an economic rivalry in Latin America.
    [Show full text]
  • Change and the Construction of Identity in the US
    Abstract Title of Dissertation: “THE SQUADRON UNDER YOUR COMMAND”: CHANGE AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF IDENTITY IN THE U.S. NAVY’S NORTH ATLANTIC SQUADRON, 1874-1897 James C. Rentfrow, PhD, 2012 Dissertation Directed by: Professor Jon T. Sumida Department of History This dissertation examines the transformation of the United States Navy as a fighting organization that took place on the North Atlantic Station between 1874 and 1897. At the beginning of this period, the warships assigned to this station were collectively administered by a rear-admiral, but were operationally deployed as individual units, each of whose actions were directed by their captains. By 1897 the North Atlantic, or “Home” Squadron as it was known, was a group of warships constituting a protean battle fleet – that is, an organized body moving and fighting in close-order, which meant that the actions of the captains were directed by a commanding admiral. The development of an American battle fleet resulted in the construction of a new organizational identity for the North Atlantic Squadron. This process was as critical as the eventual outcome. It was not linear, but one in which progress in critical areas was modulated by conflicting demands that caused distraction. From 1874-1888, exercises in fleet tactics under steam were carried out sporadically utilizing existing wooden cruising vessels. From 1889-1894, the last wooden cruisers were decommissioned and the Squadron consisted entirely of new steel warships. Ad-hoc concentrations of vessels for purposes besides exercise and training retarded the continued development of doctrine and tactics necessary for a multi-ship fighting capability during this time.
    [Show full text]
  • Index to Eries of Taped Interviews with Vice
    Index to Series of Taped Interviews with Vice Admiral William Paden Mack, USN (Ret.) Volume I AIRCRAFT CARRIERS: status in 1937-39, p. 48-49; ALPHA: ASW weapon, p. 363; AMPHIBIOUS FORCE - PACIFIC FLEET: Mack reports as aide and flag lieutenant (1942) to Adm. Rockwell - with Comdr. Dennison as Chief of Staff, p. 119 ff; made up of elements of Pac Fleet's old scouting force - need to formulate a doctrine, p. 121; the assembling of landing craft and learning how to use them, p. 121 ff; development of indirect fire support off San Clemente, p. 124-5; Mack ordered to design and construct an amphibious base at San Diego, p. 125; BB PENNSYLVANIA assigned as flag ship - Mack ordered to make arrangements on board as headquarters for the amphibious commander, p. 125; a principal task - to train navy elements in coordination with the marines (who had technical knowledge already), p. 128; Admiral King decrees the time when a landing force commander assumes his command, p. 128; Mack ordered to construct amphibious base at PT Boat Bay (on Adak), p. 139; possible use for later attack on Kuriles, p. 139-40; after three months overall plan for two amphibious operations abandoned and Adm. Rockwell given another assignment, p. 140; Mack's summary of lessons learned from Aleutians campaign for benefit of amphibious operations elsewhere, p. 140-6; first use of deceptive maneuvers at Kiska, p. 143-4; Adm. Rockwell sets up special photographic unit to take official pictures at Attu and Kiska, p. 148; See Also: Entries under Pennsylvania; Attu Operation; Gen.
    [Show full text]
  • Zaccagni Awarded Knighthood Zaccagni Knighthood Pg1 Former TEXAS Crewmember Mr
    Newsletter of the Battleship Texas Foundation Spring 2017 In this issue . Zaccagni Awarded Knighthood Zaccagni Knighthood Pg1 Former TEXAS crewmember Mr. Julio Zaccagni was awarded Knighthood in the French Legion of Honor at Ellington Field, FTV Report Pg3 Thursday April 6th. Volunteer Herb Powers has been work- ing with Julio to submit all the necessary paperwork and even OEP Report Pg4 though the application effort took many months, a lot of doc- umentation and the persistence of Marie-Laure Reed of the Curators Corner Pg5 Consul General’s office, in the end it was an ultimate success. Supporters Pg6 His award is based on service aboard the USS Mackenzie in support of the landings in Southern France, after transfer In Memory Of Pg7 from the USS TEXAS. Julio was born on November 7, 1922 in Kingmont, West Virgin- Membership Forms Pg8 ia, to Maria Martelli and Nickola Zaccagni, who had immigrated from Atessa, Italy. The family later moved to Fairmont, West Virginia, where he grew up. When Julio turned seven- Navy Poster . teen, he traveled to Balti- more to enlist in the US Navy. After Basic Training in Norfolk, VA, he traveled on the USS Wyoming to Cul- ebra, PR, where on February 20, 1940 he began his first sea assignment on the USS TEXAS. The ship participat- ed in three long range neu- trality patrols and one con- voy to Africa while he was on board the TEXAS, where he achieved the rating of Fire Controlman 2c. Photo by Herb Powers Continued on next page Battleship TEXAS Foundation Zaccagni Awarded Knighthood continued Advisory Directors Hon.
    [Show full text]
  • US Navy World War I Veteran Surveys Are Filed Alphabetically
    United States Navy US Navy World War I veteran surveys are filed alphabetically. Navy ratings are abbreviated as reflected below. B Boilerman MMA Machinist’s Mate, Aviation BM Boatswain’s Mate PhM Pharmacist’s Mate CPO Chief Petty Officer QM Quartermaster CS Commissary Steward S Seaman E Electrician SC Ship’s Cook ENG Engineman SF Shipfitter F Fireman SM Signalman GM Gunner’s Mate Y Yeoman MM Machinist’s Mate Aamold, Walter Chief Unidentified Questionnaire Yeoman Abbott, Clayton F USS Idaho Questionnaire 2nd Class Ahart, Orris J. SC USS Tivivies Questionnaire 1st Class Albright, Harry B. GM USS Remlick Questionnaire 2nd Class Alford, Thomas E. S 8th Naval District Discharge paper; release from active duty; 2nd Class enrollment record; and account of military service Allen, Manley SM USS Minnesota Questionnaire 2nd Class Allison, Milton S. PhM League Island Questionnaire 3rd Class Anderson, Albert W. SF Unidentified Questionnaire 2nd Class Anderson, Clarence E. QM Unidentified Questionnaire 2nd Class Aplin, Bruce M. QM USS Oklahoma Questionnaire 3rd Class Arentson, Harold W. Muscian USS Finland Questionnaire 1st Class Anstey, John C., Jr. QM USS Louisville The Navy Deck and Boat Book; Helpful Hints to the 2nd Class Navy Recruit; song booklets; roster of the USS LTS 930 crew, Thanksgiving menu; mementos; and Questionnaire Arndt, August H.L. F USS Alabama and Diaries, 1916-1917, and January 1918 - February, USS Kansas 1919; station billets; roster of Steaming Station, 1916; and postcards Askey, George F. S Unidentified Questionnaire 1st Class Atkins, Hazen S. ENG USS Osprey Questionnaire 2nd Class Atkinson, Floyd F Great Lakes Navy Discharge papers; enrollment record; and death 3rd Class Training Station certificate, 1937 Aubin, John F.
    [Show full text]